Garage door operator



Feb. 27, 1951 Filed Nov. 13, 1947 R. w. PETERS 2,543,506

GARAGE DOOR OPERATOR 3 Sheets-Sheet l 3mm B,WP6 Zara itW/QLM W5 Feb. 27,1951 Filed NOV. 15, 1947 R. w. PETERS 2,543,506

GARAGE DOOR OPERATOR s Sheets-Shet 2 Ri/IZPe Zara Feb. 27, 1951 FiledNov. 13, 1947 R. PETERS 2,543,506

GARAGE DOOR OPERATOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Hit/P6267? 3&

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Fatented Feb. 27, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GARAGE DOOR OPERATORRalph W. Peters, Hollywood, Calif.

Application November 13, 1947, Serial No. 785,725

3 Claims.

This invention relates to garage doors and operators therefor.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved vehicle operatedmeans whereby an overhead garage door may be moved to either open orclosed position as the vehicle moves either toward or away from thegarage.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improvedspring-pressed trip mechanism which is positioned in front of the garagein a position for engagement with the wheels of the vehicle, and is soconstructed and arranged that the first wheel or wheels to engage thetrip mechanism will effect the movement of the door from a closedposition to an open position, and the second wheel engaging the tripmechanism will have no efiect on the door operation, whereas when thedoor has been opened the outward movement of the vehicle will cause theleading wheel to engage the trip mechanism to effect setting of themechanism, and the following wheel will effect closing of the door. Thetrip mechanism is so constructed that it will be automatical- 1y set forreverse operation of the door each time it is actuated by the vehicle.

To the foregoing objects, and others which may hereinafter more fullyappear, the invention consists of the novel construction, combinationand arrangement of parts, as will be more specificall referred to andillustrated in the accompanying drawings, but it is to be understoodthat changes, variations and modifications may be resorted to which fallwithin the scope of the invention as claimed.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a detailed side elevation of a garage door operatorconstructed according to an embodiment of this invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of a portion of thedevice.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure2.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3, showing the latching means inlatched position.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary plan view of the tripping mechanism.

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 66 of Figure 1.

Figure '7 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 1-4 ofFigure 6.

Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 8-8 of Figure6.

Figure 9 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to Figure 8, showingthe tripping mechanism in its initial set position.

Figure 10 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line lU-l 0 ofFigure 1.

Figure 11 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line I IH ofFigure 3.

Figure 12 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line IZ-l 2 ofFigure 8.

Figure 13 is a fragmentary side elevation of a modified form of housingfor the tripping mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral I5 designates generally aswinging garage door which in its open position is adapted to bedisposed in a substantially horizontal uppermost position as shown infull lines in Figure 1 and when in closed position is adapted to bedisposed in a vertical position as shown in dotted lines in Fig ure 1.

The door 15 is rockably mounted on a supporting bar [5 which is securedbetween a pair of uprights ll. A pair of divergent supporting andbracing bars I8 are fixed at their outer divergent ends to the innerside of the door 15 and are fixed at their inner convergent ends to aplate E9. The plate I9 is rockably mounted on a pivot member or shaft2|] secured to the supporting bar 16. The door I5 is under springtension from a spring 2! which is secured as at 22 to a fixed part ofthe garage at a point slightly above the door I5 and is fixed as at 23to one of the supporting and bracing bars 18. The spring 2| comprises abalancing spring which is adapted to relieve the weight of the doorduring the swinging of the door from a vertical closed position to ahorizontal open position and will hold the door 15 under tension whenthe latter is in its upper open position.

In order to provide for automatic opening or closing of the door l5 bymovement of a vehicle along the floor 24, I have provided an elongatedbar 25 which is fixed as at 25 relative to the plate IS. The bar orlever 25 has connected to the opposite ends thereof a pair of springs 21and 23 and preferably a pair of straps or links 29 and 30, respectively,connect the upper ends of the springs 21 and 28 to the bar or lever 25at selected points so that the lever or bar 25 will be rocked under theaction of increasing the tension of one of the springs 21 or 28. The baror lever 25 is provided with spaced holes 3| adjacent the opposite endsthereof through selected ones of which the bars or links 29 and 30 maybe connected. A lower bar or lever 32 is rockably mounted as at 33 at apoint below the lever 25.

The pivot member 33 is mounted on a bearing block 34 which is carried bya horizontal sup- 3 porting bar connected between the uprights IT. Thelever 32 is connected as will be hereinafter described to a trippingmechanism generally designated as 36. The tripping mechanism 36 includesa U-shaped trip or crank 31 which is journalled in bearings 38 and 39secured to the floor 24 at a point outwardly from the garage. The crank31 includes a shaft 40 which extends horizontally to one side of thefloor or entrance 24 and the crank shaft 159 has loosely mounted thereona housing 4|. The housing 41 has connected thereto adjacent theperipherythereof a clevis 32 mounted on a bolt 43 and the clevis 42 hasconnected thereto one end of a flexible member 43 which extends beneatha guide roller 44 and then extends into the garage and is trained undera second guide roller 45 journalled in a bearing 45 which is fixed tothe floor of the garage between the uprights IT. The flexible member 43is connected to a clevis 41 which is pivotally engaged with the lever 32and a turnbuckle 48 is interposed between the inner end of the flexiblemember 43 and the clevis 41. The housing 4| has fixedly mounted thereina bolt or abutment Q9 which is disposed in the path of a tripping arm 53which is fixed on the crank shaft 40. At the time the garage door i5 isin its closed position the abutment 49 will be disposed in an uppermostposition as shown in Figure 9.

In Figure 8 the abutment 49 is shown in lowermost position rearwardly ofthe shaft 40 which is the position to which the abutment has been movedby rotation of the housing 5| under the action of the front wheels ofthe vehicle striking the crank 37. When the front wheels of the vehiclewhich are moving inwardly of the garage strike the crank or trip member3'! the arm 50 comprising the trigger will rotate the housing ll fromthe position shown in Figure 9 to the position shown in Figure 8 so thatwhen the rear wheels pass over the crank or tripping member 37 the rearwheels will have no effect on the operation of the door or the trippingmechanism. The trigger or crank 31 is held in a substantially verticaloperative position by means of a pair of springs 5| which are disposedin outwardly divergent relation being connected at their divergent endsto a bar 52 which is fixedly secured to the outer end of the crank shaft40.

The convergent ends of the springs 5| are secured to a spring tensioningeye bolt 53 which engages through a bar 54 carried by a supporting block55. The springs 5i will thereby normally hold the trigger or crank 37 inan upright operative position in the path of the wheels of the vehicleon one side of the latter.

The trigger 31 has mounted between the parallel arms 56 thereof a signplat 51, the plate 51 being secured to inwardly projecting lugs 58 whichare carried by the inner sides of the arms 58. The bight 59 of thetrigger 31 is adapted to have wound thereabout a coil spring or wire 60which will prevent the wheels of the vehicle from climbing upwardly overthe triggerand wil-l provide for rocking of the trigger by engagement ofthe tires of the wheels therewith.

The door I5 is adapted to be moved to a closed position when the vehiclemoves out of the garage by means of a second flexible member 6| which isconnected at its inner end to a clevis 62. A turnbuckle '63 isinterposed between the inner end of the flexible member 6| and theclevis 62 so that the flexible member 6| may be maintained in thedesired taut condition. The clevis 52 is pivotally mounted on the leveror bar'32 4 on the opposite side of the pivot 33 from the clevis 41. Theforward or outer end of the flexible member BI is connected to an outerclevis 64 which is pivotally mounted as at 65 on the housing 4| at apoint substantially diametrically opposed to the pivot 43.

In order to provide for closing of the door |5 after the vehicle hascompletely left the garage, I have provided a delayed tripping meansassociated with the tripping arm 55 whereb the housing 4| will not berotated until the rearmost wheels of the vehicle engage the trigger 31.

A pawl 66 is rockably mounted on a pivot 67 within the housing 4| andincludes a pair of pivotally connected parts 68 and 69 which arerockable relative to each other on the pivot 61. The pawl parts 68 and69 are formed with convex inner edges 19 and 1!, respectively, the edgeI0 of the part 68 having a radius with the axis of the shaft 40 as acenter. The convex inner edge 1| of the part 69 is disposed on a shorterradius than the radius of the edge 10 of the part 58 so that the freeend of the part 69 will project inwardly into the path of the swingingof the arm 50 at the time this arm is swung downwardly and clockwise toa substantially horizontal position.

A latch member 12 is pivotally mounted on a pivot T3 in the housing 4|and is adapted to engage the pawl member 69 as shown in full lines inFigure 8 before the arm 50 has swung downwardly to a horizontalposition. A spring 3 3 which is longitudinally bowed is fixed to thelatch 12, extending from the latch 72 and having the free end thereofengaging the outer edge of the pawl member 69. A spring 75 is fixed tothe pawl member 69 and extends along the outer edge of this pawl memberand engages the outer edge of the pawl member 68. During the initialclockwise swinging of the arm '50 under the action of the outer orforward wheel of the vehicle the arm 5Q will swing clockwise inside theconvex edge TB of the pawl member 58 and when the arm 50 is insubstantially horizontal position this arm will strike the pawl member69 and rock thismember outwardly to the dotted line position shown inFigure 8.

When the arm 58 is swung upwardly by the springs 5| after the outerwheel passes over the trigger 3 5, the arm 53 will rock the pawl member53 outward-1y to the full line position shown in Figure -8 and the pawlmember 69 will be locked against rocking under the action of the springi l by the outer or free end of the latch member 72 engaging on theinner concave side or edge 7| of the pawl member "69 as shown in dottedlines in Figure 8. After the arm 50 passes the pawlmember 68 and assumesits normal vertical position, pawl member 68 will be swung downwardlyunder the action of spring 15 to the dotted line position shown inFigure 8 wherein pawl member 68 will now be disposed in the path of thesubsequent swing-ing of the arm 56. When the rear wheel of the vehiclerocks trigger 3? a second time, arm 50 which is now locked by pawlmember 98 relative to the housing 4| will cause housing 4| to rotatewith the rotation or rocking of trigger 37 so that flexible member 43will be pulled outwardly and lever 32 will be rocked downwardly to thedotted line position in Figure l. Downward rocking of lever 32 will putspring :23 under increased tension so that the bracing members or links8 secured to the door i5 will be rocked downwardly and forwardly.

The lever 32 is adapted tobe latched in either door opening or closinposition by means of a latching bar 16 which is connected to a pivotmember llextending through a rock lever '18. The pivot member 11 extendsloosely through an elongated slot '39 formed in a vertical bar 86 andone end of the lever 18 is connected by means of a link 8! to the rocklever 32. The other end of the lever 78 is connected by means of a link82 to the lever 25. The latch member 78 includes a forwardlyoffsetlow'er portion 83 formed with an outwardly offset or bent keeper84and the keeper 8 is formed with. an elongated slot 85 through which alatching bolt .86 loosely extends. The latching bolt 861s horizontallyslidable through the block or body 34- and is under spring tension froma spring 8'? which constantly urges the bolt 86 inwardly so as to extendinto the path of travel of the lever 32, as shown in Figure 4.

The latch member 16 during the initial movement of the door to closedposition is adapted by reason of the movement of the lower lever 32 outof parallel relation with respect to the upper lever 25 to move thekeeper 84 below the bolt 85 as shown in Figure 4 and to extend the boltabove the lever 32 to prevent any reverse pivotin thereof after theforce on the crank 3'! is relieved. When the door l has been moved tofully closed position, the two levers 25 and 32 will be disposed insubstantially parallel relation and at this time the keeper or hump 84will be engaged with the bolt 8% as shown in full lines in Figure 3.

When the door is moved from a closed to an open position, lever 32 willbe initially rocked out of parallel relation with respect to lever 25,spring 2'3 being under increased tension, and the keeper 84 will then beinitially disposed on the upper side of the bolt 86. When the door 15 isin its uppermost completely open position, latch member 16 Will movedownwardly to the position shown in full lines in Figure 3 wherein thekeeper 8 5 is holding the bolt 86 retracted under maximum tension of thespring 81.

In the use and operation of this device, assuming that the door isinitially in its closed position as shown in dotted lines in Figure 1,when the vehicle moves toward the garage the leading or front wheels ofthe vehicle will strike the trigger Bl. abutment 49 will be disposed inthe position shown in Figure 9 so that the forward wheels or wheel ofthe vehicle will pull cable 6| forwardly and outwardly and rock lever 32downwardly to the full line position shown in Figures 1 and 2. After theforward wheels or wheel of the vehicle pass over the trigger 31, theabutment as will remain in a lower rearmost position shown in Figure 8so that the trailing or rear wheel or wheels of the vehicle will notrotate the housing ii due to the fact that the rock arm 58 will notagain engage abutment 49 as this arm is rocked rearwardly orcounter-clockwise. The door I5 can be manually closed by swinging thedoor I5 downwardly in a clockwise direction, and when the door I5 ismanually swung to a closed position it must be manually moved upwardlyto an open position. However, the door I? can be closed by the vehiclein the outward movement of the vehicle. When the vehicle moves outwardlyof the garage and the door It is in its open position, abutment 49 willbe disposed in the position shown in Figure 8. Initial forward swingingof the arm 5% 'will set pawl 66 by engagement of the leading wheel orwheels with the trigger 31. The trailing wheels will then engage trigger3'! and rock this trigger clockwise so that housing With the door in itsclosed position the :4] will rotate clockwise as viewed in Figure 8,

and. flexible member 43 will pull lever 32 downwardly from the full lineposition in Figure l to the dotted line position. Spring 28 willthereupon be tensioned and lever 25 will rock under the tension ofspring 28 so that the door 15 will be swung downwardly and forwardly tothe dotted line position shown in Figure 1.

I claim: 7 k

1. In a spring-balanced swinging garage door, vehicle actuated operatingmeans for said door comprising a rock lever, means pivotally supportingsaid lever between the ends thereof, operative connectionsbetweenthe-ends of said lever and said door, a rock member disposedforwardly of the garage and in the path of the vehicle wheels, a pair offlexible members connected at one end thereof to said rock lever, a rockarm fixed relative to said rock member, a housing loosely coupled tosaid rock member, means connecting the other ends ofsaid flexiblemembers to diametrically opposed points of said housing, said rock armbeing loosely disposed in said housing,

an abutment fixed in said housing adapted for engagement by said rockarm upon rocking of the latter in one direction to thereby pull one ofsaid flexible members and effect rocking of said rock lever to dooropening position, and a spring pressed pawl in said housing soconstructed and arranged that initial rocking of said rock arm in theopposite direction will efiect an operative setting of said pawl withoutmovement of said housing, whereby subsequent rocking of said rock armwill effect rocking of said housing with said arm in said oppositedirection and thereby pull the other of said flexible members to efiectrocking of said rock lever to door closing position.

2. In a spring-balanced swinging garage door, vehicle actuated means formoving said door to open or closed position, said means comprising arock lever, a pair of springs connected between the ends of said leverand said door whereby rocking of said lever will efiect correspondingrocking of said door, a rock member, means mounting said rock, memberoutwardly of the garage for engagement with the wheels on one side ofthe vehicle, said rock member including an inverted U-shaped crank,yieldable means normally holding said crank in upright operativeposition, a rock arm fixed relative to said rock member, a housingloosely disposed on said rock member and receiving said rock armtherein, means connecting the opposite ends of said rock lever todiametrically opposed points of said housing, and a spring-pressed pawlin said housing correlated with said rock arm and adapted to effectdelayed rocking of said rock lever to door closing position upon outwardmovement of a vehicle, and abutment means fixed in said housing andengageable with said rock arm for effecting immediate rocking of saidrock lever to door opening position upon inward movement of a ve hicle.

3. In a spring balanced swinging garage door, vehicle actuated means formovin said door to open or closed position, said means comprising a rocklever pivotally mounted intermediate the ends thereof, connecting meansextending from said lever to said door, an idler lever pivotally mountedin spaced relation to said rock lever, spring means connecting the endsof said rock lever to the ends of said idler lever, a rock memberdisposed in spaced relation to said door and in the path of movement ofthe vehicle, means connecting said rock member to said idler lever,

7 an intermediate lever disposed between said rock lever and said idlerlever, means connecting one end of said intermediate lever to said rocklever, means connecting the other end of said intermediate lever to saididler lever, vertically slidable pivot means engaging said intermediatelever intermediate the length thereof, a spring-pressed latching boltconstantly urged into the path of travel of said idler lever and adaptedto block movement thereof, and latching bolt retracting means carried bysaid slidable pivot means and engaging said bolt for retracting saidbolt when said rock lever and said idler lever are in parallel relationand adapted to release said bolt when said rock and idler levers are outof parallel for movement of said bolt into idler lever blockingposition.

RALPH W. PETERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

